[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 99 (Wednesday, July 6, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1230]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING JAMES D. BOYD'S 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF PUBLIC SERVICE TO THE 
                          STATE OF CALIFORNIA

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JIM COSTA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 6, 2011

  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Garamendi and I rise today to 
congratulate Mr. James D. Boyd on an exemplary 50 years of public 
service to the State of California. For five decades, Mr. Boyd has been 
a pioneer in the fields of renewable fuels, air quality, new vehicle 
technologies, bio-energy and climate change. He deserves great praise 
for his involvement and expertise, which has resulted in California 
becoming a leading example for the rest of the nation.
  Jim graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1961 
with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration, and a minor in 
Mechanical Engineering. He immediately went to work for the California 
Department of Water Resources, where he served as principal budget 
reviewer for the administration of major state public health and health 
care programs, as well as appeared before committees of the state 
legislature as principal advocate for these programs' budget needs.
  From 1970 to 1976, Mr. Boyd worked at the California Health and 
Welfare Agency as the Deputy Director, and then as the Assistant 
Secretary of Operations. In the latter role, he directed operational, 
administrative and fiscal policy for eight agencies with more than 
30,000 employees and a budget exceeding $3 billion. These departments 
operated the state's programs for Health (Public Health, Medicaid, 
Mental Health), Employment, Rehabilitation, Social Welfare, 
Corrections, and Youth Authority.
  Following his tenure at the California Health and Welfare Agency, Jim 
was appointed chief executive officer of the California Air Resources 
Board (CARB). From 1981 to 1996, he directed the nation's largest state 
air pollution-control program, which included the adoption of 
regulations that required the use of cleaner burning gasoline and 
diesel fuel, lowering emissions of cars and trucks, and the 
implementation of electric vehicles on California roads. Due in large 
part to these efforts, the state now has the highest number of hybrid 
electric vehicles in the world. During his time as CARB's CEO, he 
successfully served under five chairmen and three governors with 
contrasting political views, which is a significant testament to his 
professionalism and problem-solving skills.
  For the past decade, Mr. Boyd has served on the California Energy 
Commission, where he oversees transportation programs, and an annual 
$100 million investment in alternative and renewable fuel and vehicle 
technologies. Because of his expertise, Jim was appointed by U.S. 
Energy Secretary Steven Chu to the National Petroleum Council to 
comprehend and explain the circumstances and fixtures surrounding 
transportation fuels of the future.
  Jim has accomplished many feats in his careers including organizing 
California's first Bioenergy Interagency Working Group, as well as 
California's first Joint Agency Climate Change Team, which predated any 
current mandates pertaining to the issue. He has been honored for 
contributions to the field of air pollution control and serves on 
several nonprofit and public-private boards. For instance, his 
participation with the Baja Board of Governors and the Swedish 
government on renewable energy resulted in two Memorandums of 
Understanding between the State of California and Baja, and California 
and Sweden.
  Additionally, Mr. Boyd was appointed California's liaison to the 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2002 and became knowledgeable about 
issues facing nuclear power plants, particularly seismic vulnerability. 
Because of this experience, Jim was able to testify before Congress in 
the wake of Japan's Fukusima nuclear disaster in April 2011.
  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Garamendi and I ask our colleagues to rise and thank 
Mr. Jim Boyd for his tireless dedication to the health and well-being 
of the great people of California, his decades of strong leadership, 
and for continuing to seek creative and cost-effective solutions to 
some of the state's most pressing issues.

                          ____________________